Authors

ED NEWMAN is a former professional football player who was selected by Don Shula and the “perfect season” Miami Dolphins in the sixth round of the 1973 NFL draft. Newman played 12 seasons with the team and participated in one winning Super Bowl and two American Conference championships. He earned All-Pro recognition four times before reluctantly breaking from the Dolphins with a knee injury. Newman went on to pursue a law degree and served as a civil litigator and then a county court judge in Miami-Dade County for 28 years.

HOLLY NEWMAN GREENBERG became a Miami Dolphins fan simply because it was “her father’s team.” After graduating from Duke University with summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa honors, Newman Greenberg earned a master’s degree in organizational psychology from Teachers College at Columbia University. She used her credentials to shape the culture of numerous Fortune 500 companies and then, following the birth of her children, shifted her focus to her family and fulfilled her dream of memorializing her father’s story in Warrior Judge: One Man's Journey from Gridiron to Gavel (Hawes & Jenkins).

Poet and multimedia artist DIANA KHOI NGUYEN was born and raised in California. Her debut poetry collection Ghost Of was selected by Terrance Hayes for the Omnidawn Open Contest and was a finalist for the National Book Award and Los Angeles Times Book Prize. It also received the 2019 Kate Tufts Discovery Award and a Colorado Book Award. A Kundiman fellow and member of the Vietnamese diasporic artist collective She Who Has No Master(s), Nguyen’s other honors include awards from the 92Y “Discovery” Poetry Contest, Key West Literary Seminars, and Academy of American Poets. Root Fractures: Poems (Scribner) is her second poetry collection.

ALEJANDRO NODARSE was born and raised in Miami, the son of Cuban exiles. He holds a master’s degree from Florida State University and an MFA from the University of Miami. He is an alumna of the Las Dos Brujas Writers’ Workshop, a former independent bookseller, and a former staff member at the Voices of Our Nations Arts Foundation writers’ conference. Nodarse is an avid biker, camper, and hiker of the Everglades and is currently a public high school English and creative writing teacher in Miami-Dade County. Blood in the Cut: A Novel (Flatiron Books) is his debut book.

GEORGE O'CONNOR is The New York Times bestselling author of the Olympians series – graphic novels featuring the tragic, dramatic, and epic lives of the Greek Pantheon – and its counterpart series, Asgardians, featuring the Norse Gods. His first graphic novel, Journey into Mohawk Country (First Second), pushed the boundaries of the genre, using as its sole text the historical journal of the 17th-century Dutch trader Harmen Meyndertsz van den Bogaert. O'Connor illustrated acclaimed playwright Adam Rapp’s Ball Peen Hammer (First Second), and collaborated with Daniel G. Newman on Unrig: How to Fix Our Broken Democracy (First Second), the first volume in the World Citizen Comics series. He is also the creator of popular picture books such as The New York Times bestselling Kapow! (Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing) and If I Had a Triceratops (Candlewick). He lives in Brooklyn, New York.

SHIRLENE OBUOBI, author of the novel On Rotation and a regular contributor to The Washington Post, is a Ghanaian American cardiologist, cartoonist, and author who grew up in Chicago, Hot Springs, Arkansas, and the Woodlands, Texas. When she isn’t in the hospital she can be found drawing comics, writing on her phone, and talking to everyone who will listen about women’s heart health. Between Friends & Lovers: A Novel (Avon) is her latest book.

SONSOLES ÓNEGA Periodista, licenciada por la Universidad San Pablo CEU de Madrid. Ha trabajado en CNN+ y Noticias Cuatro, y fue corresponsal parlamentaria de Informativos Tele 5 desde 2008 hasta 2018. Entre 2018 y 2022 presentó distintos formatos televisivos en Mediaset, como Ya es mediodía o Ya son las ocho. Desde octubre de 2022 está al frente del magacín Y ahora Sonsoles en Antena 3. Es autora de las novelas Calle Habana, esquina Obispo; Donde Dios no estuvo; Encuentros en Bonaval; Nosotras que lo quisimos todo; Después del amor (Premio de Novela Fernando Lara 2017) y Mil besos prohibidos. Este año llega a la Feria con su última novela, Las hijas de la criada, ha sido galardonada con el Premio Planeta 2023. La novela nos sumerge, con la cadencia de las historias narradas junto al fuego, en un apasionante relato en un remoto pazo de Galicia. Hay secretos de familia que merecen ser contados. Esta es una historia mágica y realista al mismo tiempo, en una Galicia extraordinaria, sobre hombres y mujeres que se rebelan contra su propio destino en busca de la verdad.

GLORIA ORDAZ Ganadora de cinco premios Emmy. Periodista. Presentadora de Noticias Telemundo 51, madre y esposa. Nacida en Cuba. Participa en conversación con la periodista y escritora Gina Montaner.

LUIS ALEJANDRO ORDÓÑEZ es venezolano y vive en Estados Unidos desde 2008. Es autor de las novelas Si me muero, abre estos archivos; El último New York Times; y del libro de relatos Play. Además, editó la antología de microrrelatos Con la urgencia del instante. Entre 2021 y 2022 participó como mentor del Writers Mentorship Program de LatinX in Publishing. Presenta este año en la Feria Aquí no encontrarás a Weeping Sally (Ars Communis), una obra escrita para que pueda ser leída como un libro de cuentos, un relato polifónico que muestra el carácter elusivo de la verdad y es un rompecabezas donde cada pieza encaja de tal forma que cambia el conjunto.

CLAIRE OSHETSKY is the author of Chouette, winner of the William Saroyan International Prize for Writing, a PEN Faulkner nominee, and a finalist for the Northern California Book Award and the Barbellion Prize. Their writing has appeared in Salon, Wired, and The New York Times, and their short fiction has been featured in Alaska Quarterly, Hayden's Ferry, North American Review, and others. A former science journalist, Oshetsky has written for Wired, Technology Review, The New York Times, and other periodicals. They live in Santa Cruz with their family. Oshetsky's latest work is Poor Deer: A Novel (Ecco).

MARK OSHIRO (they/them) is the author of the young adult books Jasmine Is Haunted (Starscape), Anger is a Gift (2019 Schneider Family Book Award), Each of Us a Desert, and Into the Light, as well as their middle-grade books The Insiders, You Only Live Once, David Bravo, and Star Wars Hunters: Battle for the Arena. They are also the co-author (with Rick Riordan) of the No. 1 New York Times and No. 1 Indie bestseller The Sun and the Star: A Nico de Angelo Adventure.

ANA MARÍA OSPINA Periodista franco colombiana de la redacción en español de RFI en París. Corresponsal en Francia de Claro Sports (México) y colaboradora de la Deutsche Welle (Alemania) y La Sexta (España). Poco antes de graduarse como periodista en la Universidad de Antioquia en Medellín en 2007, comenzó su carrera en la sección deportiva del canal local. Durante tres años estuvo en el canal nacional RCN en diferentes secciones como orden público, crónicas de viajes y farándula. Se mudó a París a finales de 2011 para cumplir su sueño de trabajar en el Tour de Francia. A sus 40 años ha cubierto siete Tour, cuatro Vuelta a España, dos Rally Dakar, un Mundial de Fútbol femenino así como unos Juegos Olímpicos y Paralímpicos. Participa este año en la presentación de Messi, 10 miradas sobre el 10.

JIM O’HEIR is an Emmy Award-winning actor best known for his role as Jerry Gergich on the show Parks and Recreation. Throughout his career, O’Heir has starred in countless movies and TV shows, including Curb Your Enthusiasm, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Parenthood, and Better Call Saul. He now also co-hosts the hit podcast Parks and Recollection with Greg Levine. Welcome to Pawnee: Stories of Friendship, Waffles, and Parks and Recreation (William Morrow) is his literary debut.

MARÍA ELENA PACHECO Presentará la obra Johnny Pacheco: tres de café, dos de azúcar y ponle salsa!, de Juan A. Moreno-Velázquez. Moreno-Velázquez es un periodista galardonado especializado en el mundo del espectáculo y la comunidad latina. Sus incisivos reportajes le valieron el Primer Premio de la Asociación Nacional de Publicaciones Hispanas por su cobertura de La Lupe, que inspiró la serie documental La leyenda de La Lupe y la obra teatral La Lupe: mi vida, mi destino. En 2003, recibió el prestigioso Primer Premio de los 100 Mejores Medios Hispanos. Graduado de la Universidad de Nueva York y de la Escuela Graduada de Comunicaciones Públicas de la Universidad de Fordham, ha realizado una considerables investigaciones sobre la industria musical latina y es considerado un musicólogo de renombre especializado en música tropical y jazz. Juan es un ex profesor de la Universidad del Sagrado Corazón en Santurce, Puerto Rico, y enseñó investigación social en el Boricua College de Nueva York. Como periodista, fue editor de entretenimiento de El Diario-La Prensa, el diario de mayor antigüedad de idioma español de la ciudad de Nueva York. Fue autor de la aclamada columna semanal Cuadrando en Cuadrante, que se especializaba en la radio comercial y su tratamiento de temas latinos. Es autor de Demistificación de una diva: La verdad sobre de La Lupe (2003), La Reina es La Rumba: por siempre Celia (2006), Maelo: Hijo de Borikén, Rey de los Soneros (2016). Su libro sobre La Lupe fue adquirido este año para un proyecto cinematográfico de Hollywood.

SORAYA PALMER is the author of The Human Origins of Beatrice Porter and Other Essential Ghosts: A Novel (Catapult), her debut work. She is a Brooklyn, New York, born-and-raised writer and licensed social worker who advocates for survivors of gender-based violence who are facing criminal charges related to their abuse. She has also spent time as a community organizer for young people who fight against gentrification and police brutality. Her writing has appeared in Electric Literature, Hazlitt, Ploughshares, and elsewhere. She has been awarded a residency at Blue Mountain Center and graduated from the Virginia Tech MFA program. She lives in Brooklyn with her cat, Nicholas.

OMER PARDILLO CID es gestor de talentos y productor. En 2002 creó La Fundación Celia Cruz, una organización sin fines de lucro con el propósito de brindar becas a niños que estudian música y mantener vivo el legado de “La Reina de la Salsa”. En 2006, Pardillo Cid se convirtió en vicepresidente de Entretenimiento Loud & Live. Presenta un programa de radio semanal “¡Azúcar!, Celebrando el legado de Celia Cruz”, en SiriusXM de National Latino Broadcasting LLC. En 2011, Pardillo Cid recibió un Latin Grammy como productor por “Cachao: El Último Mambo” y en 2012 por “El Último Mambo” un Premio Grammy. Pardillo Cid presenta en la Feria Celia, mi vida: una autobiografía, una obra que ofrece una mirada profunda a la vida y el legado de la inolvidable “Reina de la Salsa”. Desde sus humildes comienzos en Cuba hasta su épica carrera en los Estados Unidos, Celia Cruz fue una figura de contrastes, reflejando una autenticidad incomparable que la hizo querida por millones en todo el mundo. Su espíritu genuino y su amor por la música resonaron en cada página de su historia, y este libro captura la esencia de su legado de una manera aún más vibrante.

ORLANDO LUIS PARDO LAZO (M.A. y Ph.D. en Literatura Comparada, Universidad de Washington en St. Louis) es un escritor y fotógrafo de La Habana, Cuba. En el exilio, la Editorial Hypermedia ha publicado varias de sus obras, incluyendo sus colecciones de crónicas, Del clarín escuchad el silencio (2016) y Uber Cuba (2021). También es autor de la colección de cuentos Boring Home (2014, censurada en Cuba), la antología de narrativa cubana Cuba in Splinters y el libro de fotografía La Habana abandonada. Su trabajo ha sido publicado en revistas como Smithsonian Magazine, In These Times, Sampsonia Way, Human Geography y Words Without Borders, así como en sitios web como El Nacional (Venezuela), Qué Pasa (Chile), Diario de Cuba, entre otros. Participa en la presentación de Voz cautiva, de la poeta y actual presa política cubana María Cristina Garrido.

DEBORAH PAREDEZ, author of American Diva: Extraordinary, Unruly, Fabulous (Norton), is a cultural critic, poet, and scholar. Her previous books include the critical study Selenidad: Selena, Latinos, and the Performance of Memory and the poetry collections This Side of Skin and Year of the Dog. She is the chair of the creative writing program at Columbia University and the co-founder of CantoMundo, a national organization for Latinx poets.  

Upon his arrival in New York City via Atlanta in the 1990s, TEDD PATTERSON established himself as a rising star in the underground dance music scene. As the in-house record promoter at Emotive Records and then at Liquid Groove, Patterson helped both labels become established as ones to watch, and while doing so began his own journey onto the main stage, representing house music worldwide. After numerous guest spots at some of New York’s most famous clubs – such as Limelight, Club USA, the Tunnel, Save the Robots, and others – Patterson was handpicked by Leslie Doyle for the “Magic Sessions” alongside all-stars Louie Vega and Tony Humphries. His specific sound made him a pivotal player at the party and exposed him to a worldwide audience. Legions of fans followed as well as the release of the Sessions Twelve (The Magic Sessions) compilation on Defected Records. His signature party, “Vibal,” earned him a 13-year residency at the award-winning club, Cielo. Patterson served his loyal fans in New York while making time to headline at some of the world’s best clubs: London’s Ministry of Sound, Berlin’s Panorama Bar, Pacha Ibiza, and Montreal’s Stereo, and he created a massive following in Italy, where he still returns each year. As a DJ, producer, and remixer, Patterson has made equally impactful appearances on celebrated, taste-making labels like Defected, Strictly Rhythm, Nervous, Stereo, Junior, Unquantize, and Rekids, to name a few. His collaborations with Pete Heller, Eric Kupper, and Iberian heavyweights Chus & Ceballos have become house classics. Stateside, he is a reoccurring player at Ladyfags’ Battle Hymn party in NYC, often in rotation at Brooklyn's House of Yes, and a few other New York underground hot spots. He’s a fan favorite when his Horse Meat Disco family comes to town, and is a sometime-featured player at Glitterbox. @teddpatterson

PAMELA PAUL is an American journalist, correspondent, editor, and author. She has been an opinion columnist for The New York Times since March 2022. From 2013 to 2022, she was editor of The New York Times Book Review. She is the author, co-author, or editor of eight books, including Rectangle Time, How to Raise a Reader, My Life with Bob: Flawed Heroine Keeps Book of Books, Plot Ensues, The Starter Marriage and the Future of Matrimony, Pornified, Parenting, Inc., and By the Book: Writers on Literature and the Literary Life. Her most recent book is 100 Things We’ve Lost to the Internet.

EDWARD PAULINO is an associate professor in the Department of Global History at CUNY/John Jay College. He is the author of Dividing Hispaniola, co-editor of The Border of Lights Reader, and a co-founder of the Border of Lights collective. He wrote and performed his one-person show Eddie's Perejil and wrote the script for the Ted Ed animation video series Ugly History. He is currently a co-editor for the Ruth Simms Hamilton African Diaspora Book Series (RSHAD) at Michigan State University.

MARY E. PEARSON is the international and New York Times bestselling author of the two-part series Dance of Thieves, the Remnant Chronicles trilogy, The Jenna Fox Chronicles series, and other books for young readers. The Courting of Bristol Keats: A Novel (Flatiron Books) is her debut work of fiction for adults.

RIDLEY PEARSON is the author of the bestselling Kingdom Keepers Inheritance middle-grade thriller series and 40 other novels for adults and young readers. He also co-wrote, with Dave Barry, Peter and the Starcatchers, a prequel to J.M. Barry’s Peter Pan; later adapted for Broadway, it won five Tony Awards. His novel The Diary of Ellen Rimbauer: My Life At Rose Red was filmed as an ABC TV movie special event. A Fulbright fellow, Ridley taught creative writing at Fudan University in Shanghai, China, and at Boise State University. Kingdom Keepers: Inheritance: Villains' Realm (Kingdom Keepers Inheritance Book 2) (Disney Hyperion) is the second installment of his Kingdom Keepers Inheritance trilogy.

CAREL PEDRE is a leading figure in Haiti’s media landscape, with a dynamic presence as a radio and television host, director, producer, and philanthropist. With more than 25 years of experience, he is best known for hosting Chokarella, Haiti’s top-rated morning show, and Digicel Stars, the country’s premier talent search. Pedre gained international recognition during the 2010 earthquake, when he used social media to provide critical updates on the devastation, earning him the title “The Eye of Haiti.” A dedicated humanitarian, he founded the Sunday Project, which delivers food to children in Cité Soleil, one of Haiti’s most impoverished areas. Through his media company, Chokarella, and innovative apps like PleziKanaval, Pedre continues to bridge cultural gaps and connect the global Haitian community.

GEORGE PELECANOS is the author of 22 novels and story collections set in and around Washington, D.C., including his latest novel, Buster: A Dog (Akashic Books). He is a screenwriter, essayist, TV writer, and producer whose credits include The Wire, Treme, The Deuce, and We Own This City, and he has received numerous international writing awards. Pelecanos is also the editor of the bestselling volumes D.C. Noir (Akashic Books) and D.C. Noir 2: The Classics (Akashic Books). He lives in Silver Spring, Maryland.

DR. MINDY PELZ is a women's health expert on a mission to empower women to believe in their bodies. She is the bestselling author of the bestselling Fast Like a Girl and The Menopause Reset. She hosts The Resetter Podcast, ranked within Apple’s top-20 category of leading U.S. science podcasts. Her YouTube channel has garnered more than 60 million lifetime views. She holds a B.S. from the University of Kansas and a Doctor of Chiropractic degree. Her latest book is Eat Like a Girl: 100+ Delicious Recipes to Balance Hormones, Boost Energy, and Burn Fat (Hay House LLC).

LISANDRO PÉREZ is a professor in the department of Latin American and Latinx studies at John Jay College, City University of New York. He is the author of Sugar, Cigars, and Revolution: The Making of Cuban New York (NYU Press); his latest book is The House on G Street: A Cuban Family Saga (NYU Press).

LISANDRO PÉREZ is a professor in the department of Latin American and Latinx studies at John Jay College, City University of New York. He is the author of Sugar, Cigars, and Revolution: The Making of Cuban New York (NYU Press); his latest book is The House on G Street: A Cuban Family Saga (NYU Press).

Born in Haiti, MARIE PETIT-LOUIS is an avid reader, married with four children, a grandmother, and an amazing friend. When not writing, she loves to read, study the Bible, and listen to gospel.